Workers Don't Save, Live Paycheck to Paycheck

Workers Don't Save, Live Paycheck to Paycheck

Scraping By 40% of workers "always" or "usually" live paycheck to paycheck-slightly down from last year.

Even with still-high unemployment, many professionals are taking on a high degree of personal financial risk and aren’t saving enough. In fact, many are living paycheck to paycheck, according to a recent survey from CareerBuilder. And a significant percentage of those who are saving said they've had to reduce their 401(k) allocations. The paycheck-to-paycheck syndrome is most common among younger workers, but financial and investment experts say it's critical to save routinely -even a little bit-from your take-home earnings as early in your career as possible. Fortunately, CareerBuilder reports, a growing number of employees are recognizing the need for better budget planning. "The situation has improved for workers who've grown more confident with their job security, or who've taken steps to pay down debt and save more," says Rosemary Haefner, vice president of human resources at CareerBuilder.